LR4 Transmission Fluid Change: Pan Swap Option

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mbw

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I did mine a little more than a year ago and noticed recently that my pan was leaking around the gasket. The new bolts were kinda loose. I think the gasket got trashed from a loose pan, so im waiting to order a new gasket and have 6 bottles of ZF Lifegaurd here ready to replace the gasket. Check those pan bolts if you did this job. Don't over tighten them though since its aluminum.. and that would suck.
 

TrinidadLR4

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Just completed this today. Well, almost; still 2 skid plates to bolt up.

My truck had just about 87K even on it. I was actually pleasantly surprised that the old fluid looked as good as it did. It was dark, but not sludgey at all, and just a bit of mush on the magnets.

I would estimate I got about 6 liters of new fluid in. Maybe a bit more, but hard to be more precise as there was some spillage during my contortions under the truck.

As noted previously in this thread, no need for a hacksaw. The old filter neck snapped easily with one sharp ****.

One odd note is that when doing the final fill I tried to use my iid tool to read the fluid temp directly. It read 20c at startup, but never varied from there. I used my IR temp gun as a backup on the metal pan and did the final fill at an indicated 39.4c while the iid still said 20c.

I also dropped the mechatronic unit and replaced the bridge and tube seals. This was timely as the old bridge had snapped a piece off.

Test drive is complete, and she shifts as expected, so a sigh of relief there. Monkeying with the mechatronic had me a bit nervous after some of my research.

A lift would make this a breeze, but it is doable on your back in the garage.

ETA: . For anyone doing their research, I did not reset the adaptions after changing the mechatronic bridge/seals. No issue with error codes or shifting for me after 200 miles driving today.

After dropping the mechatronic and replacing the seals, did you have to do anything special to reattach the mechatronic? Any sequence of torquing, or particular torque values? I am afraid of mucking up the reinstall of the mechatronic unit once i do this...
 

DaytonaRS7

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I'm about to go back in and do mine again, I only got about half the fluid out the first time.

This RPM hunting thing- I'm having a bit of it.. My buddy in an LR3 has it.. I had the truck at the dealership, they noticed it, and after 2 weeks they couldn't track it down. They also assumed it was the torque converter..

I'll do mine again this weekend and report back to see if it fixes it..

MP


Just curious if the trans fluid change solved your RPM hunting issue.

I replaced the pan/filter/fluid and still had the RPM hunting. a few days later Ijust did a drain and fill of fluid only, which solved the problem.

Dont pay for unnecssary transmission repair until you do a second drain/fill.
 

Dan7

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Read all 14 pages of fun here...great thread! Have a couple follow-up questions:

1. Can't find a T40 that fits the ratchet. From what I can tell, those ratchets are for smaller bits only.
2. I'm at 51K mi. Should I just flush/refill or do the filter as well?
3. Didn't see anyone replace the plastic collar around the wiring harness as recommended in the AB video. Was this just too difficult or did no one feel it was needed?

Thanks in advance!
 

avslash

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Read all 14 pages of fun here...great thread! Have a couple follow-up questions:

1. Can't find a T40 that fits the ratchet. From what I can tell, those ratchets are for smaller bits only.
2. I'm at 51K mi. Should I just flush/refill or do the filter as well?
3. Didn't see anyone replace the plastic collar around the wiring harness as recommended in the AB video. Was this just too difficult or did no one feel it was needed?

Thanks in advance!

1. Keep looking. They are out there. I found a "pass through" type where the only thickness is the ratchet itself and the length of the bit.
2. If you're going to do it, do it IMHO.
3. I replaced this. It is tight, but doable.
 

DaytonaRS7

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Read all 14 pages of fun here...great thread! Have a couple follow-up questions:

1. Can't find a T40 that fits the ratchet. From what I can tell, those ratchets are for smaller bits only.
2. I'm at 51K mi. Should I just flush/refill or do the filter as well?
3. Didn't see anyone replace the plastic collar around the wiring harness as recommended in the AB video. Was this just too difficult or did no one feel it was needed?

Thanks in advance!

1. i didnt have the correct tool. i used a t40 bit tapped in a 1/4 wrench. it sucked. lol
2. filter/pan swap. drive a day. change fluid again. reason for this is even the pan swap doesnt get all the fluid. the second fluid change will help get more of it though.
3....no idea what this is? i didnt do anything with wiring when i did mine. (MY2011)
 

ryanjl

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3....no idea what this is? i didnt do anything with wiring when i did mine. (MY2011)

It's the collar up higher on the side of the transmission. AB recommends replacing it because they claim it starts leaking after a while. You've also got to at least remove it if you plan on dropping the mex unit and replacing the sleeves and whatnot.
 

scott schmerge

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After dropping the mechatronic and replacing the seals, did you have to do anything special to reattach the mechatronic? Any sequence of torquing, or particular torque values? I am afraid of mucking up the reinstall of the mechatronic unit once i do this...

yes you do! There is a sequence you can find if you search YouTube or google. Same sequence as bmw. Search ZF mechatronic replacement (not sure if you have the 26 or 28). Specific sequence and torque specs.
 

disco-stu

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Awesome thread! Thanks for doing the work and posting it. Made it a lot easier. A couple or three thoughts:
1. Can't find a T40 that fits the ratchet. From what I can tell, those ratchets are for smaller bits only.

At Harbor Freight, on the same aisle as the pass through ratchet was a set of torx bits that included a T40.

I used my small floor jack to support the front skid plate while removing and installing. It made it a lot easier, especially on the re install. Got the jack centered on the plate, raised it up, lined it up and reattached.

I used a plumber's heat shield https://www.homedepot.com/p/Oatey-9-in-x-12-in-Hands-Free-Solder-Heat-Shield-314002/100345508 over the exhaust when removing and replacing the fluid plug at temperature. That and a welder's glove meant I wasn't worried about burning my hand.
 

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